My project is centered around interest and
commitment patterns in introductory physics courses, namely PHYS 160 (University
Physics 1), so the category my project falls in is Physics Education. As a
physics major, I went through the University Physics 1-3 sequence and saw
firsthand how my classmates would slowly lose interest in the course and
eventually stop coming to class, stop doing the homework, and begin to fail the
class. When I became a Learning Assistant for PHYS 160, I continued to see this
decline in my students. Since I intend to become a high school physics teacher,
I set out to discover precisely why these declines occur and how we, as
educators, can keep the students engaged, interested, and learning. The results
of this project will directly influence how I run my classroom when graduate.
I was lucky with my project in the sense that
most of my research is done while I’m working as a Learning Assistant. I attend
three PHYS 160 lectures a week, one from the traditional section of the class
and two for the alternative learning section, in addition to holding office
hours for students to come to me with questions. Each time I enter the
classroom, I note attendance and general attitudes from the students throughout
the class. At four times throughout the semester, I sent out surveys to my
students to assess their thoughts on the course as well as invite them to
interview with me regarding their feelings about PHYS 160 and physics in
general.
I learned this semester just how much of an
impact an educator can have on his or her students. I’ve seen students who
become disheartened when confronted with a challenging professor and try less
as a result. Likewise, I’ve seen students who are inspired by the professor,
who discover a newfound love for physics that drives them to succeed. If
there’s anything I want to take from this experience, it’s that how I relate to
my future students can affect their lifelong perception of physics.
